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LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS Cellular respiration and photosynthesis are energetic bioch

ID: 74284 • Letter: L

Question

LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS

Cellular respiration and photosynthesis are energetic biochemical pathways that involve the reorganization of molecules in order to produce energy or to store energy in organic molecules. Provide a detailed explanation of each system and include the following:

1) The formal equations of cellular respiration and photosynthesis

2) Where each process occurs in the cell (which areas and organelles) for cellular respiration and photosynthesis

3) The 4 detailed steps in cellular respiration

4) The 2 detailed steps in photosynthesis

5) How much energy is produced in cellular respiration (detailed list)

6) What sugar is made at the end of photosynthesis

7) An explanation as to why each process is important to living organisms

Explanation / Answer

Cellular respiration and photosynthesis are inter related biochemical pathways where the product of one reaction is the reactant for the other one, which can be evident from its equations.

Cellular Respiration: C6H12O6+ 6O2 6CO2 + 6H2O

Photosynthesis: 6CO2 + 6H2O C6H12O6+ 6O2

In a plant cell the photosynthesis takes place in chloroplast and in animal cell the cellular respiration occurs in mitochondria via TCA cycle and electron transport chain.

The glucose produced by photosynthesis is initially converted into pyruvate via glycolysis which occurs in cytoplasm and the pyruvate enters TCA cycle in the mitochondira which generates energy rich NADH and FADH which enters electron transport chain to produce ATP via ATP synthase.

Photosynthesis occurs in two stages, The light reaction, where light energy is harvested in the photocells of the plant and that energy is utilized to produce ATP which is used to produce glucose in dark cycle via pentose pathway.

The energy produced upon hydrolysis of glucose which is produced at the end of photosynthesis is given below

Total

By combining glycolysis and TCA cylce

30-32 ATP is generated.

Both photosyntheis and cellular respiration is

important because it is involved in energy

transfer mechanism between different organisms

25

Reaction No. of NADH/FADH2generated No. of ATP generated/utilized Under Aerobic conditions Glucose Glucose 6-phosphate -1 Fructose 6-phosphate Fructose 1,6-bisphosphate -1 2 (Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate) 2 (1,3-bisphosphoglycerate) 2 NADH +3/+5* 2 (1,3-bisphosphoglycerate) 2 (3-phosphoglycerate) +2 2 Phosphoenolpyruvate 2 Pyruvate +2 Total 5/7* (aerobic conditions) Under Anaerobic conditions 2 Pyruvate 2 lactate 2 NADH +3/+5* Total 8/10* (anaerobic conditions)